Kieran Trippier could end up with egg on his face after sending a confident jibe in the direction of Sunderland ahead of them facing Newcastle United next season.
Newcastle United will take on Sunderland in the Premier League for the first time in nearly a decade next season, with the Tyne-Wear derby returning to the top flight.
Sunderland earned promotion in dramatic fashion at Wembley last season, completing a late comeback against Sheffield United to win the Play-off final 2-1.
As a result, the two North East rivals will meet in the first division for the first time since 2016 when they compete at the Stadium of Light in December.
With the return fixture at St. James’ Park set to come in March 2026, Newcastle will be desperate to register their first league win in the derby since 2011.
The old foes did meet in the FA Cup in 2024, with Newcastle running out 3-0 winners, and Kieran Trippier has now stated he ‘can’t wait’ to beat the Black Cats again.
Yet, given the way everything else is going for Newcastle this summer, it’s a statement that could really come back to bite him.
Kieran Trippier ‘can’t wait’ to beat Sunderland again in the Premier League
Trippier was speaking alongside Fabian Schar and Sandro Tonali at a player meet and greet in Seoul, South Korea, during Newcastle’s pre-season tour and was asked about playing Sunderland in the Premier League.
In a video shared by Craig Hope on X, formerly Twitter, Trippier did not hold back when speaking about his desire to beat Sunderland again.
“I hope there’s no children here,” he said.
“But the amount of s___ that I got off them last time, I can’t wait to beat them again, to be honest with you.
“But no, looking forward to playing them. I think it’s good for the city, as well.
“It’s good for them to get promoted, but it would also be nice to see them get relegated as well.”
It’s a brave and bold statement, but one that could easily be used to embarrass Newcastle if the results do not go their way.
The man who scored two of the three goals when they last met, Alexander Isak, is desperate to leave the club, too.
Sunderland have enjoyed a much better transfer window than Newcastle United
It’s an especially risky statement for Trippier to make, given Sunderland are enjoying a much better summer transfer window than Newcastle.
It’s not even as if they’re signing players relative to their newly promoted status, as several of them would be more than welcome at Newcastle.
Buoyed by the sales of Jobe Bellingham and Tommy Watson, Sunderland have spent more than double their North East rivals, bringing in experienced veterans like Granit Xhaka and young starlets such as Habib Diarra.
Their seven signings so far are:
- Granit Xhaka – Bayer Leverkusen, £17.3m
- Simon Adingra – Brighton, £20.5m
- Habib Diarra – Strasbourg, £30m
- Enzo Le Fee – Roma, £20m
- Noah Sadiki – Union Saint-Gilloise, £17.5m
- Reinildo Mandava – Atletico Madrid, free
- Chemsdine Talbi – Club Brugge, £19m
Sunderland have signed more midfielders this summer than Newcastle even have in their squad.
Just the thought of Xhaka competing in a Tyne-Wear derby has increased the anticipation for the game but Newcastle should probably hold the overconfidence. For now, at least.
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